Pro-668: Noob screws the pooch

[drew5250]

I want to preface my post by disclosing that I'm new to the world of scanners, I have a lot to learn. I purchased a new in the box Pro-668 that I just received in the mail. I used the zip code function and found local frequencies and began scanning within 5 minutes of opening the box. Admittingly, I wasn't getting as many transmissions as I thought I would (I live in a town of ~250,000) and I was getting approx. one transmission every minute. I decided to download Radioshack's pro-668 software and give it a spin. This was a huge mistake (because I don't know what I'm doing). I don't know what I did, but now none of the functions in the "select places" menu will play. When I select zip, county, city, etc., I'm able to import frequencies but when I go to play, I get the nothing to play message. I'm hoping this is a simple fix. If anyone out there could either give me advice or direct me to a thread that addresses this issues I would be very appreciative. Thanks!

 

[scannerjunkie]

I totally understand where your at. i was once their myself. i have the pro 668 and love it. once you set everything up as far as importing what agencies and types of systems you would like to listen to then you assign a playlist for them to go into. i set mine up so all p25 digital agencies are on playlist 1 analog on playlist 2 railroad on 3 highway dept on 4 and so on and so on. then you write it to the scanner. once you get the hang of writing to the scanner then you can tweak the other settings as well.

 

[drew5250]

I totally understand where your at. i was once their myself. i have the pro 668 and love it. once you set everything up as far as importing what agencies and types of systems you would like to listen to then you assign a playlist for them to go into. i set mine up so all p25 digital agencies are on playlist 1 analog on playlist 2 railroad on 3 highway dept on 4 and so on and so on. then you write it to the scanner. once you get the hang of writing to the scanner then you can tweak the other settings as well.

Thanks, I figured getting into this hobby would lead to frustration initially. If you or anyone else know of a good tutorial for the pro-668 software, it would be really helpful. I've spent time online looking for a tutorial, but I've yet to find a comprehensive (or basic) guide. I love the pro 668, the clarity is great when I had it working.

 

[greggk]

I cannot give you advice on your particular software and scanner. I can tell you that whatever you did is "fixable." Its difficult to destroy a scanner based on software alone..I think? Once some experts link up with you here you will get back to normal. I guess I am just saying "don't worry.

 

[drew5250]

I cannot give you advice on your particular software and scanner. I can tell you that whatever you did is "fixable." Its difficult to destroy a scanner based on software alone..I think? Once some experts link up with you here you will get back to normal. I guess I am just saying "don't worry."

Yeah, I figure that it's either a software or settings issue. Most likely a setting issue from me selecting the wrong thing. I know I'll get this sorted eventually, digital scanners are way more complicated that I thought they would be. It's a matter of learning a new hobby with (hopefully) some help from a few experts.

 

[greggk]

By the way, I have a PRO-106. I use BUTEL software. It takes some time to learn, but once that day of understanding comes around, it will be easy to use.

 

[bama9999]

Thanks, I figured getting into this hobby would lead to frustration initially. If you or anyone else know of a good tutorial for the pro-668 software, it would be really helpful. I've spent time online looking for a tutorial, but I've yet to find a comprehensive (or basic) guide. I love the pro 668, the clarity is great when I had it working.

You might find this helpful. Easier to Read Pro-668/PSR800 Digital Scanner and EZ-Scan/iScan Software Manual

Mark has some great online manuals for most all recent scanners.

 

[skinnyb82]

Thanks, I figured getting into this hobby would lead to frustration initially. If you or anyone else know of a good tutorial for the pro-668 software, it would be really helpful. I've spent time online looking for a tutorial, but I've yet to find a comprehensive (or basic) guide. I love the pro 668, the clarity is great when I had it working.

As someone who picked up an RS PRO-668 recently because I'm getting back into the hobby, if not casually, my attitude is that if a hobby isn't frustrating when you first pick it up (musical instruments, fishing, shooting, or anything else that requires knowledge or some sort of coordination) then it isn't worth picking up in the first place. I just recently picked it (back) up after a nearly 18 year hiatus, a lot has changed since the days when I used to be able to use my Realistic PRO-36 to pick up practically anything. Learning all of this new stuff is daunting, I've just been playing around with settings and seeing what works for me. That and referencing this forum for advice, tutorials, etc.

Sent from my VS987 using Tapatalk

 

[drew5250]

As someone who picked up an RS PRO-668 recently because I'm getting back into the hobby, if not casually, my attitude is that if a hobby isn't frustrating when you first pick it up (musical instruments, fishing, shooting, or anything else that requires knowledge or some sort of coordination) then it isn't worth picking up in the first place. I just recently picked it (back) up after a nearly 18 year hiatus, a lot has changed since the days when I used to be able to use my Realistic PRO-36 to pick up practically anything. Learning all of this new stuff is daunting, I've just been playing around with settings and seeing what works for me. That and referencing this forum for advice, tutorials, etc.

Sent from my VS987 using Tapatalk

Agreed. If a hobby is too easy, it's probably going to get boring rather quickly. I do have a simi-positive update. I did get the pro-668 working. As predicted, it was user error and the solution was embarrassingly simple. Now I'm trying to set up a department-specific trunking system in my hometown of Oceanside, Ca. They're using a mixed digital/analog Phase II system. I'm able to isolate Oceanside PD's frequency bank using lock-out, but I rarely get audio out of the scanner (department specific, I haven't had issues with other departments). The display indicates I'm connected to Oceanside PD, however, the audio is either non-existent or intermittent. Does anyone out there know what could be causing this?